r/NoStupidQuestions • u/Garey_Coleman • 10d ago

Where are the homeless supposed to go?

Cities have been cracking down on homeless people so they can’t have encampments or stay on sidewalks. At the same time usually the shelters are full. So those who are unable to get into a shelter, where are they supposed to go?

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u/MolemanEnLaManana 10d ago

No one wants to say it aloud (because it’s a vile and appalling outcome) but the logical conclusion here is putting homeless people in prisons and other institutions against their will. If you criminalize homelessness more and more, and you don’t create more spaces where the homeless can freely live, that’s what you’re building toward.

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u/HungryIndependence13 10d ago

Florida has made it illegal for them to sleep. No joke. 

You aren’t allowed to use someone else’s private property to sleep. 

You aren’t allowed to sleep on public property. 

So, they can’t sleep anywhere. They are not allowed to sleep. 

This 100% turns them into criminals against their will. No matter how hard they try to stay awake they will eventually fall asleep somewhere. 

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u/Fantastic-Campaign31 9d ago

One of the biggest "holy shit, this is what the world is really like" moments for me as a new adult was when I went on a road trip and due to limited funds some nights I slept in my car. And I learned very quick how difficult it is to legally sleep in public. My brain couldn't comprehend it. I'm technically legally not allowed to just park on the street somewhere where I'm not bothering someone and sleep? Or find an empty lot overnight?  Then I wondered about people less fortunate than I who don't do it by choice. Who have no other option. It's incredibly sad that as a society you can't just...exist, sometimes. 

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u/doktorhladnjak 9d ago

Because it's not about one person quietly sleeping in their car for one night. If they allow one car, it grows to many. Cars become RVs and encampments. Piles of garbage and human waste follow. It becomes inhumane and a biohazard. Neighbors complain. So the police in many cities operate with a no tolerance policy.